Recherche en didactique des matématiques, vol.34, no.2-3, pp.201-238, 2014 (Peer-Reviewed Journal)
This paper deals with students’ self-sufficiency when studying mathematics and proposes a didactical approach to better understand the mathematical conditions of this self-sufficiency. The concept of mathematical site is introduced in order to describe and analyse the knowledge at stake in situations where students have to study mathematics and to produce some results under their own responsibility, in classroom and elsewhere. The research focuses on algebraic and functional tasks at tenth grade within the French high school 2001 curriculum. In spite of being relatively old, our observations in three different classes shows that mathematics teaching at this level does not provide to the students the mathematical tools that would be necessary in order to allow studying on the basis of questions they may encounter or form for themselves, because the mathematical content is thoroughly suffers of partial or total fragmentation. These findings take now some relevance as the French curriculum introduced a new competency in common core competencies: students’ autonomy and initiative The paper sheds some light upon reasons why French students do not acquire self-sufficiency, especially those who need support in this domain.